Durga - the goddess of power and strength,
is perhaps the most important goddess of the Hindus. She is a
multi-dimensional Goddess, with many names, many personas, and
many facets. As Mahishasuramardini or Shakti, she is the destroyer
of evil - with her ten mighty arms carrying lethal weapons she
triumphantly slays the demon Mahishasura. As Sati, beloved daughter
of King Daksha and Queen Menaka she gives up a kingdom and earns
her father's wrath. As Kali, she turns black as the night and
omnipotent, terrible in rage and fury, with just a string of
skulls as her garland and her only garb. As Parvati, she is serene,
the pretty consort of Lord Shiva by his side in the snowy peaks
of the Kailash mountain. She is Bhawani, symbol of life. She
is Sati, the object of death. She is Basanti, the heralder of
springtime. She is also Amba, Jagadhatri, Tara, Ambika, Annapurna.

Durga, through all her forms, encompasses
the essence of salvation and sacrifice. She is the mother of
bounty and wealth, as also of beauty and knowledge, for her daughters
are Lakshmi and Saraswati (Hindu goddesses of wealth and knowledge,
respectively).

ARDHANARISHWARA
MALE AND FEMALE BODY
UNITED IN ONE
Courtesy Exotic India

She is the embodiement of purity, knowledge,
truth and self-realization. The highest form of truth present
in any being or Jiva is known as "Aatman" or supreme
consciousness. This supreme consciousness or the absolute soul
is infinite, birthless, deathless, beyond time and space, and
beyond the law of causation. Goddess Durga is the inherent dynamic
energy through which this supreme consciousness manifests itself.

Goddess Durga represents the power of the
Supreme Being that preserves moral order and righteousness in
the universe. She is the energy aspect of the Lord. Without Durga,
Lord Shiva has no expression and without Shiva, Durga has no
existence. Lord Shiva is only the silent witness. He is motionless,
absolutely changeless. He is not affected by the cosmic play.
Shiva has no direct connection with the tangible elements in
the universe and is obliged to emanate a manifestation, an emission
of energy, shakti, through the goddess. It is Durga who is the
doer of all actions. Shiva and Durga are regarded as the twofold
personalization of Brahman, the primeval substance.

The Sanskrit word Durga means a fort, or a
place that is protected and thus difficult to reach. Durga, also
called Divine Mother, protects mankind from evil and misery by
destroying evil forces such as selfishness, jealousy, prejudice,
hatred, anger, and ego.

The projection of the stronger and fiercer
side of womanhood is but obvious in the tales surrounding goddess
Durga. According to certain mythological tales, Durga is thought
to be the skin of Parvati, which slips off and fights the demon
brothers - Shumbha and Nishumbha. Sometimes Durga is supposed
to have created helpers to fight for her, Kali being the most
famous. In other versions she is supposed to have created the
Saptamatrikas, the Seven Mothers, who were originally Yaksha
gods.

The absence of any male influence as well
as of any male assistance, in Durga's fierce battles with male
demons, is worth noting. The most interesting facet of the tales
of her origin is not that she is presented as Shakti - the divine
power - but rather, that she assumes the powers of the male gods
to save the universe.

Hindu mythology tells an interesting tale
of the fierce battle of Durga with Mahishasura, a demon who earned
the favour of Lord Shiva after long and hard penance. Lord Shiva,
pleased with the devotion of the demon, blessed him with a boon
that no man or deity would be able to kill him. Empowered with
the boon, Mahishasura started his reign of terror over the Universe
and people were killed mercilessly. He even attacked the abode
of the gods. The war between gods and demons lasted a hundred
years, in which Mahishasura was the leader of the Asuras or demons
and Indra was the chief of the gods. In this contest the army
of the gods was defeated by the more powerful demons. When Mahishasura
conquered the gods, he became their leader.

GODS
PRAY TO LORD SHIVA
TO PROTECT THEM FROM THE
TYRANNY OF THE DEMON KING
Courtesy Exotic India

The gods, utterly defeated, took refuge under
Lord Brahma, who took them to Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. Having
heard of the misdeeds of the demons, pure energy blazed forth
from Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva - the trinity forming the pure
energy of Godhood. As the gods witnessed this fiery crest of
energy pervading all the directions and blazing forth like a
mountain peak aflame with the sun, this matchless energy that
sprang from the bodies of all the gods, its light illuminating
the three worlds, became concentrated in one spot and took form
of the Goddess. Her face was from the light of Shiva. Her ten
arms were from Lord Vishnu. Her feet were from Lord Brahma. The
tresses were formed from the light of Yama (god of death) and
the two breasts were formed from the light of Somanath (Moon
God), the waist from the light of Indra (the king of gods), the
legs and thighs from the light of Varun (god of oceans), and
hips from the light of Bhoodev (Earth), the toes from the light
of Surya (Sun God), fingers of the hand from the light of the
Vasus (the children of Goddess river Ganga) and nose from the
light of Kuber (the keeper of wealth for the Gods). The teeth
were formed from the light of Prajapati (the lord of creatures),
the Triad of her eyes was born from the light of Agni (Fire God),
the eyebrows from the two Sandhyas (sunrise and sunset), the
ears from the light of Vayu (god of Wind). Thus from the energy
of these gods, as well as from many other gods, was formed the
goddess Durga.

The gods then gifted the goddess with their
weapons and other divine objects to help her in her battle with
the demon, Mahishasura. Lord Shiva gave her a trident while Lord
Vishnu gave her a disc. Varuna, gave her a conch and noose, and
Agni gave her a spear. From Vayu, she received arrows. Indra,
gave her a thunderbolt, and the gift of his white-skinned elephant
Airavata was a bell. From Yama, she received a sword and shield
and from Vishwakarma (god of Architecture), an axe and armor.
The god of mountains, Himavat gifted her with jewels and a lion
to ride on. Durga was also given many other precious and magical
gifts, new clothing, and a garland of immortal lotuses for her
head and breasts.

The beautiful Durga, bedecked in jewels and
golden armor and equipped with the fearsome weaponry of the gods,
was ready to engage in battle with the fierce and cruel Mahishasura.
Her lion's thunderous roars shook the three worlds. Oceans boiled
and surf poured overland. Continents were torn at their granite
foundations as whole new chains of mountains rose, while older
ranges crumbled, cracked, and gave way to dust in a thousand
landslides. Mahishasura and his demon allies found their attention
drawn from heaven to Earth, as Durga's power moved its way towards
heaven. Though confident of their power and control in heaven,
the demons could not help being awestruck.

As Mahishasura's armies were struck down effortlessly
by Durga, it became obvious to him that he was not as secure
in heaven as he had thought. No demon could fight her and win.
Her breath would replenish her armies - bringing back to life
all of her soldiers who fell. From Airavata's gift, the bell,
came a confusing clamor. The demons were in chaos and were easily
defeated and captured. The ground was left littered with the
broken limbs and body parts of the defeated demon army.

Mahishasura was shocked and enraged by the
disastrous events on the battlefield. He took on the form of
a demonic buffalo, and charged at the divine soldiers of Durga,
goring and killing many and lashing out with his whip-like tail.
Durga's lion pounced on the demon-buffalo and engaged him in
a battle. While he was thus engaged, Durga threw her noose around
his neck.

Mahishasura then assumed the form of a lion
and when Durga beheaded the lion, Mahishasura escaped in the
form of a man who was immediately face to face with a volley
of arrows from Durga. The demon escaped yet again and then having
assumed the form of a huge elephant, battered Durga's lion with
a tusk. With her sword Durga hacked the tusk into pieces.

The demon reverted once more to the form of
the wild buffalo. He hid himself in the mountains from where
he hurled boulders at Durga with his horns. Durga drank the divine
nectar, the gift of Kuber. She then pounced on Mahishasura, pushing
him to the ground with her left leg. She grasped his head in
one hand, pierced him with her sharp trident held in another,
and with yet another of her ten hands she wielded her bright
sword, beheading him. At last he fell dead, and the scattered
surviving remnants of his once invincible army fled in terror.

The Gods bowed to the goddess and showered
their praises on the goddess following her victory:

"Mother, you have created this universe.
You are the strength of all. Devatas (Gods), Rishis (sages),
Yakshas (demi-gods), Kinnaras (heavenly musicians with human
bodies and heads of horses) all bow to you. Even Brahma, Vishnu
and Maheshwar (Lord Shiva) do not know you fully. For the Dharmik
(righteous) you are Lakshmi (Goddess of wealth), for the adharmiks
(evil) you are Alakshmi (she who brings misfortune). You are
buddhi (knowledge), you are lajja (modesty), you are shraddha
(respect). You were there always and will be there forever. You
are the adhar (source) for all, You are Prakriti (nature). You
save the earth by killing the numerous asuras (demons)."

The tale of Durga continues beyond Mahishasura,
through the tale of goddess Kaushiki, another form of goddess
Durga. After Mahishasura, two more demon brothers, Shumbha and
Nishumbha forcibly drove the gods out of heaven. The gods then
started praying to Mahamaya - the mother Goddess - to help them.
At that moment, Goddess Parvati - wife of Lord Shiva - was going
to take a bath in the river. After Parvati heard their tale of
woe, a beautiful woman emerged from Parvati's body. She was named
Kaushiki. Upon the emergence of Kaushiki, Parvati's body turned
black and she then became known as Kalika.

Kaushiki was spotted by Chanda and Munda,
the two trusted assistants of Shumbha and Nishumbha. They reported
to their masters, that they had spotted a beautiful woman. Shumbha
then sent a messenger to Kaushiki. The messenger, Sugriva, went
to Kaushiki and informed her of the desire of their masters,
Shumbha and Nishumbha, who were also the rulers of the heavens,
that Kaushiki marry either of the two demon brothers. Kaushiki,
feigning innocence replied that she was very foolish and that
she had pledged that she would marry only that person who would
defeat her in warfare. She asked Sugriva to convey to his masters
that whoever could defeat her in battle could win her. On hearing
this, Shumbha sent Dhumralochana to capture the goddess. Initially
the asura (demon) tried to persuade the Devi to accompany him,
but when she refused, he rushed to capture her. The goddess uttered
a mantra and the asura was reduced to ashes. On hearing this,
Shumbha sent Chanda and Munda to capture the Devi. On seeing
Chanda and Munda coming, Kaushiki wriggled her eyebrows. From
the eyebrows emerged a ferocious looking goddess with a sword
and a noose in her hands. She wore a tiger skin around her body.
Her big eyes were red and from her tongue saliva dribbled. She
was goddess Kali. Kali jumped among the asuras (demons) and started
killing them. She killed Chanda and Munda and dragged their bodies
to Kaushiki. This gave Kali the name of Chamunda.

The asuras, after the death of Chanda and
Munda, attacked the goddesses Kaushiki and Kali from all sides.
At that moment, from the bodies of the various gods, women forces
began emerging. These goddesses started fighting along with Kaushiki.
Kali then approached Shiva and requested Lord Shiva to ask Shumbha
and Nishumbha to surrender. This act of Kali requesting Lord
Shiva to be her messenger earned her the name Shivaduti - (she
whose messenger is Shiva). Hearing Shiva's message, the asuras
became even more ferocious. Among the asuras there was one named
Raktabija. If a drop of his blood, dropped on the ground, another
asura would spring forth from that drop of blood. Unknowingly,
the goddesses attacked Raktabeeja and from his flowing blood
numerous Raktabeejas emerged. Following this, Kali swallowed
up Raktabeeja and the asuras which emerged from his blood.

Upon Raktabeeja's death, Nishumbha was killed
by Kaushiki after he attacked her. After Shumbha too was defeated,
he asked if so many goddesses fighting against a solitary demon
was fair. In response, all the goddesses merged into Kaushiki
and thereafter she killed the evil Nishumbha.

Durga is also equated with Mahamaya - the
supreme creator of illusions and attachment - the one whose spell
even the gods cannot elude. There is an interesting tale related
to Mahamaya. Before the creation of the universe, water pervaded
all space. In that water, Lord Vishnu rested in Yoga Nidra (deep
slumber), which was a result of a divine spell cast by Mahamaya
on Lord Vishnu. From the navel of Lord Vishnu appeared Lord Brahma,
the creator, seated on a lotus. From the wax in Lord Vishnu's
ear were formed two demons, Madhu and Kaitabha. Madhu and Kaitabha
were supposed to be companions of Brahma but being demons they
indulged in naughty acts, which disturbed Lord Vishnu's slumber
and he ordered them to limit their fun and frolic in the depths
of the ocean so that his cosmic slumber wouldn't be disturbed.
Though the demons went away they pledged vengeance on Lord Vishnu.
They propitiated the Mahamaya and appeased her into giving them
a boon of choice of their own death, which she granted them.
The demons then decided to come back to where Brahma and Vishnu
resided and started scaring Brahma. Seeing this Lord Vishnu decided
to kill the two demons but he could do little since they were
protected by Mahamaya's boon. Brahma and Vishnu then propitiated
Mahamaya. Mahamaya used her powers of illusion and cast spells
on the two demons, which made them grant a boon to Lord Vishnu.
They granted Lord Vishnu the boon of being able to kill them,
on the condition that he did so only where there be no earth
or water, no air or ether, neither mind nor intelligence and
not even false ego. Taking this opportunity, Lord Vishnu squashed
the two demons on his thigh, which was neither of earth, water,
air, ether, fire, mind, intelligence or false ego, since Lord
Vishnu's was a transcendental body. Thus the Mahamaya using her
skills at illusions brought the evil demons to their own end.

Durga is also equated with two other popular
Indian goddesses - Sati and Parvati - both consorts of Lord Shiva,
though at different points in time. Though all three are worshipped
separately, they are seen to be the form of the same goddess
Durga.

KING
DAKSHA RESTORED TO LIFE
WITH GOAT'S HEAD AFTER SHIVA
SLAYS HIM AFTER SAT'S DEATH

Sati was the first-born daughter of king Daksha,
one of the progenitors of mankind. Sati, right from her childhood,
started worshipping Lord Shiva as her would-be husband. Shiva,
being pleased with the worship of Sati, came to marry her. Daksha
did not like this tiger-skin clad groom with ash and dirt over
all of his body. Sati however got married to Shiva against her
father's wishes. King Daksha, later on, arranged for a yagna
(Hindu form of penance where offerings are made to a holy pyre
which represents the fire god) where everyone except Shiva was
invited. Sati, despite Shiva's objections went to attend the
yagna and was subsequently subjected to insulting remarks made
by her father. Not being able to bear this insult, Sati immolated
herself in sacrificial fire. Hearing this news Shiva flew in
a rage and reached there with his blazing trident and along with
his followers of demi-gods, destroyed the sacrificial altar and
beheaded king Daksha. Then, lifting up Sati's body, he started
his violent dance, Tandava -the dance of destruction. As the
entire creation looked on with fear as the earth shook and winds
roared and the oceans heaved, Lord Vishnu used his Sudarshan
Chakra (divine disc) to cut off Sati's body into pieces while
Shiva held on to it and kept dancing. As the last of her pieces
fell from Shiva's shoulder, he was finally pacified. Shiva then
restored life to Daksha using a goat's head as a replacement
for Daksha's own. The spots where the pieces of Sati's body fell
are now known as Shaktipeeths and are spread over 51 places in
the Indian subcontinent.

In her next life, Sati appeared as Parvati,
the daughter of Himalaya. After the loss of Sati, Lord Shiva
had lost interest in worldly matters and marriage did not interest
him anymore. Parvati, however, being Sati reincarnate, wanted
to marry Lord Shiva, and identical to Sati, Parvati too practiced
severe austerities for a thousand years to appease Lord Shiva,
who eventually agreed to marry Parvati. The wedding of Shiva
and Parvati is described in a very colorful manner in ancient
Hindu Puranic literature, describing the merry-making procession
of the followers of Lord Shiva - mendicants, wanderers and the
lot - following him to Parvati's home for his wedding.

There is an interesting tale about how Parvati
came to be called Durga. On one occasion the sage Agastya asked
Lord Kartikeya why Parvati, his mother, was called Durga. Kartikeya
replied that once there was a demon, named Durga, the son of
Ruru. He with his austerities pleased Lord Brahma and with his
blessings, became very powerful. He conquered the three worlds
and even dethroned Indra, the king of Gods. He abolished all
religious ceremonies. Brahmins were terrified and stopped reading
Vedas. All the gods assembled and prayed to Lord Shiva to protect
them from the tyranny of this demon. Shiva took pity on them
and asked goddess Parvati to go and destroy the evil demon. She
calmed the Gods and agreed to slay the evil Durga. There was
long and fierce battle. As soon as the demon came near with his
evil followers, Parvati assumed thousand arms and also brought
out a number of weapons out of her body. Just as in the legend
of Durga and Mahishasura, here too, Goddess Parvati, with her
trident, killed the evil Durga, who had assumed the form of a
buffalo. The Gods, pleased with the goddess, honored her by naming
her Goddess Durga.

Origins of Durga as a Deity

Traces of origin of Durga as a deity have
been found in wild regions such as the Vindhya Mountains and
with old tribes such as the Sabaras and Pulindas. Probably these
roots associate her with the non-Aryan habits of drinking alcohol
and non-vegeterianism. Durga is first mentioned in the Mahabharata
as a virgin delighting in wine, flesh, and animal sacrifice.
Durga's association with agriculture, especially in her major
festival, the Durga Puja, may arise from her early origins. She
is thought to be the power inherent in the growth of crops and
in all vegetation.

GODDESS
ISHTAR OF
MESOPOTAMIA

The origin of goddess Durga can be, very strangely,
traced back to the Mesopotamian culture. The depictions and form
of goddess Ishtar, worshipped in Mesopotamia, hold a striking
resemblance to those of goddess Durga in Hindu religious texts.
Mesopotamia of ancient times is an area, which is mostly covered
by present day Iraq. The goddess Ishtar was worshipped by the
Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and even Romans and Egyptians,
since about 2000 B.C. and probably even before that, since an
epic called the descent of Ishtar was already traced to an old
tale of that time. Ishtar is described as an independent goddess
who roamed the forests and deserts at will and was a constant
seeker of battle. She was depicted as riding a lion and had multiple
arms holding many weapons. She was thought to have had many lovers
from all sorts of backgrounds and probably this was seen as a
probable cause of her immense popularity with the common man
of those days since he preferred her raw energy to pretensions
and pomposity often associated with most other gods. This feeling
of her transcending class division was emphasized by the wide-ranging
profile of lovers from all social classes.

Possibly through trade routes and ancient
cross-cultural contacts, goddess Ishtar found her way into ancient
Hinduism. However, the nature of promiscuity of Ishtar did not
probably find favor with the ancient Hindus and hence those characteristics
of hers, which alluded to promiscuity, were discarded and thus
goddess Durga took form in ancient Hindu religion. Other forms
of Durga have been found in other regions, cultures and religions
too - with evidence of similar deities in Japanese-Buddhist art
forms.

Widespread worship of goddess Durga is found
in texts of the 4th and 7th centuries A.D., with the resurgence
of goddess worship during those times. She is the only female
deity after whom an entire Upanisad is named. At the close of
the Vedic era there were apparently several goddesses acknowledged
as wives of Shiva while other goddesses were worshiped by different
castes throughout India. These diverse deities eventually coalesced
into the one great goddess, Mahadevi, whose ultimate origin may
have been the Mother Goddess of the Indus valley civilization.
In the ancient Indus Valley civilization it is obvious that the
worship of female deities had a very prominent place in society.
The many seals and figurines found provide evidence for the apparently
highly important place of female deities in the religion of the
time. There is evidence of a Mother or Earth goddess cult being
in existence in the period.

The post-Vedic period saw the rise of several
goddesses hardly mentioned in the epic period (Mahabharata and
Ramayana and Vedas) rising to a dominant position in worship.
Durga and Kali were such goddesses and each gathered a following
of devotees who held them as the supreme divinity. Durga and
Kali were essentially independent but they were still often linked
to powerful gods but in a drastically different role than the
subservient, model partners played by the goddesses of the epics.

Durga came to be seen as the supreme deity
by her devotees and in many aspects was supposed to have a similar
role to the highest held male deities. She took on the role of
leader of the gods in their struggle against the demons and also,
as does Vishnu, comes down to earth to defeat evil. Durga was
thought to be particularly pleased with blood offerings. Though
associated to Lord Shiva, Durga is still essentially seen as
independent.

In the early Medieval period appeared the
Great Goddess or Mahadevi. She was to her devotees indisputably
the highest manifestation of the divine. The emergence of Mahadevi
is evidence of the acceptance by a large section of the population
of the highest manifestation of the divine being feminine. Portrayals
of Mahadevi can be found in the Devi Mahatmya, Saundaryalahari
and the Devi-bhagavata Purana. The Devi Mahatmya is perhaps the
most significant, illustrating the emergence and establishment
of Devi as the ultimate reality of the universe within the Sanskritized
Hindu tradition. As has been mentioned earlier, goddess Durga
is essentially equated with the Mahadevi.

Around the fourth century A.D., images of
Durga killing a buffalo become common throughout India. After
the sixth century and into the medieval period, Durga was well-known
and popularly worshipped. In the classical texts, the Puranas,
dating from the third to the fifteenth centuries, her mythological
exploits are recounted. An entire Purana, the Devibhagavatam,
is dedicated to Durga. The most important text is the section
of the Markandeya Purana called the Devi Mahatmya, of possibly
the seventh century, which is also known as the Durgasaptasati
or Chandi Mahatmya. This text is so venerated that every verse
is considered a mantra (sacred utterance) of the Goddess.

Various Forms of Goddess Durga

Goddess Durga is propitiated as various forms,
as have been mentioned in various holy Hindu texts. Some of these
sets of forms overlap partially. All of these forms however mark
an independent Goddess who is intricately involved in the protection
of nature and cosmic order and in destruction of evil forces
who try to overturn this balance.

The Markandeya Purana places the ten forms
of Durga in the following order:

Durga: The Goddess who first received
and showed her beautiful face to entice the demons.

Dashabhooja: In this fierce ten-armed
form of hers, she destroyed a part of the army of demons.

Singha-Vahini: In this form atop a
lion, she fought with Raktabeeja, the general of Shumbha and
Nishumbha whose drops of blood created thousands of demons.

Mahisha-Mardini: In this form she slew
Shumbha, the demon, who had taken the form of a buffalo.

Kali: In this form she destroyed Raktabeeja
by drinking his drops of blood and not allowing them to fall
on the ground thus disallowing the further creation of demons
from his blood.

Muktakeshi: In this form with flowing
hair she overcame another army of demons.

Tara: In this form she killed Sambhu.

Chinnamastika: In this form she killed
Nishumbha.

Jagadguree: In this form she was worshipped
by all the gods on their salvation from the demons.

Goddess Durga is also intricately associated
with three distinct aspects of the cosmos as seen in the Hindu
thought process. Durga is said to be associated with Shakti,
Maya and Prakriti.

Shakti

Shakti, the Basis, is the underlying power
of the divine, the aspects of the divine that permits and provokes
creative activity, a creative force, personified as goddess.

Goddess as Shakti: the male gods contribute
their strength and vigor to the goddess, who epitomizes power,
action and strength in the battle with demons. Durga is action
and power personified and as such is a fitting representation
of the idea of Shakti.

Maya

Maya, the Delusion, is the power that deludes
an individual into thinking oneself to be the center of the world,
the power that prevents an individual from experiencing the ultimate
truth. It impels individuals into self-centered, egotistical
actions and thus hides the underlying unity of reality and masks
one's essential identity with Brahman. Maya can be as either
a positive or a negative energy.

Goddess as Maya : In the battle with Madhu
and Kaitabha, she deludes the demons so that Vishnu can slay
them. In the battle with Mahishasura, she enters into the battle
more of leela (divine play), fighting with the demons because
it pleases her, not out of sense of compulsion.

Prakriti

Prakriti is the physical world as well as
the inherent rhythms within this world that impel nature to gratify
and provide itself in its manifold species. She is both primordial
matter, from which all material things come, and the living instincts
and patterns, that imbue the material world with its proclivities
to sustain and recreate itself in individual beings.

Goddess as Prakriti: In Devi Mahatmaya - a
Hindu text on goddess Durga - it is stated that Durga is the
world, and as the earth itself, she conveys cosmic stability.
She is Sakambhari (she who provides the world with food from
her own body). She is the foundation of all creatures and that,
which nourishes all creatures. In her role as the cosmic queen,
warrior goddess and demon slayer, Durga in effect protects herself
in her aspect as the earth itself.

Hindu religious texts also talk about the
existence of the Ten Great Feminine Cosmic Powers (Dasha Mahavidyas)
which basically can be thought to be the ten fundamental aspects
of the Supreme Cosmic Mother's personality. Nevertheless, each
Goddess has a specific cosmic function in the universal harmony.
The traditional sequence of the ten Goddesses is:

Bhuvaneshwari : The Power of Space
and The Night of Perfect Realization

Tripura Bhairavi : The Power of Death
and The Night of Destiny

Chhinnamasta : The Power of Sacrifice
and The Night of Courage

Dhumavati : The Power of Deprivation
and The Night of Frustration

Bagalamukhi : The Power of Instantaneous
Stopping

Matangi : The Power of Domination and
The Night of Illusion

Kamalatmika : The Power of Perfect
Happiness and The Night of Paradise

Another such classification of the mother
Goddess based on the various functions in protecting the cosmos
and keeping the divine cosmic cycle running is the basis of the
Nava Durga or the Nine Durgas. These nine goddesses, who actually
are forms of Goddess Durga are propitiated on each day of a popular
Hindu festival called the Navaratri.

Shailputri: As daughter (putri) of
the Himalaya mountains (Shail), Parvati or Hemvati represents
the first of the nine Durgas. She is depicted as holding a trident
and a lotus in each of her two hands and is shown mounted on
a bull.

Brahmacharini: The name indicates the
phase of Parvati's life when she was indulging in severe austerities
to appease Lord Shiva into marrying her. She had pledged that
she would remain unmarried (Brahmacharini) till Lord Shiva gives
his consent to marrying Parvati. She is shown as holding a water
pot (Kumbha) in one hand and a rosary in the other. She is considered
as a holder of knowledge and wisdom. Rudrakhsa (rosary beads)
form her favorite ornamentation.

Chandraghanta: As Chadraghanta, the
goddess is depicted as having golden skin and with a moon-crescent
near her forehead. She is shown as having three eyes and ten
hands, eight of which carry weapons and two of which form gestures
of giving boons and stopping harms. She is shown as sitting on
a tiger. She is usually associated with the giver of knowledge,
bliss and serenity.

Kushmanda: The fourth Durga is known
as Kushmanda. She is depicted as emanating a cosmic aura and
is depicted as having eight hands, seven of which carry weapons
while the eighth carries a rosary.

Skanda Mata: Skanda Mata literally
means the mother of Skanda. Skanda was the son of Lord Shiva
and Parvati and was the leader of the army of gods.The goddess
is shown as having four hands, two of which carry lotuses while
two are in defending and granting gestures. She is shown sitting
on a lion with her son Skanda in her lap.

Katyayani: Katyaynai is so named because
of her stay at the hermitage of sage Katyayan for the purpose
of penance. She is sometimes also said to be the daughter of
sage Katyayan. She also is shown astride a lion and has three
eyes and four arms. In one hand she holds a lotus and in another
a weapon. The third and fourth hands show defending and granting
gestures.

Kaalratri: The seventh Durga, Kaalratri,
is depicted as having black skin with bountiful hair, four arms
and astride a donkey. In one hand she holds a cleaver and in
another a burning torch. With the other two hands she forms gestures
of granting and defending. She represents the enemy of darkness
and ignorance.

Maha Gauri: Maha Gauri is depicted
as the fairest of the nine Durgas and is often dressed in white
or green. She emanates peace and compassion and is shown with
three eyes and as riding a bull. She also has four arms, one
of which carries a tambourine and another a trident. The other
two form defending and granting gestures. It is said that when
Parvati, consort of Lord Shiva, became dirty while observing
penance, Lord Shiva bathed her with the holy waters of river
Ganga. Parvati's body turned lightning bright and thus she came
to be known as Maha Gauri (Gauri means fair).

Siddhidatri:Siddhidatri means
the giver of siddhis (magical or spiritual powers for the control
of self, others and the forces of nature). It is said in Devipuran
that the Supreme God, Lord Shiva received all of these powers
by propitiating the Maha Shakti. The Goddess is sometimes shown
atop a lion and sometimes atop a lotus. She is shown as having
four arms, which hold a club, a conch shell and a lotus. The
fourth hand forms a gesture of granting. Siddhidatri is considered
to be the most powerful of all the nine forms of Durga.

Durga is said to be extraordinarily beautiful;
she does not use her beauty for seduction, but rather entrapment.
She entices her victims and then defeats them. She rides a lion,
and it appears whenever her strengths are needed. Her role is
not that of creator, but rather that of a maintainer: she maintains
cosmic order by defeating demons that plague the universe.

Durga is not only a powerful force for cosmic
order but also a protector of her devotees. She listens to her
devotees and attends to their needs. The Devi Mahatmya describes
her as a personal savior who will save her devotees from forest
fires, wild animals, robbers, imprisonment, execution, and battle.

Goddess Durga keeps up the play of the divine
universal God through the three attributes of Nature, namely,
Satva (equilibrium and serenity), Rajas (dynamism and kinesis)
and Tamas (ignorance and inertia). Knowledge, peace, lust, anger,
greed, egoism and pride, all are Her forms. Maha Saraswati is
Her Sattviki Shakti or power of equilibrium. Maha Lakshmi is
Her Rajasik Shakti or power of activity. And Maha Kali is Her
Tamsik Shakti the power of destruction. All these are feminine
forms.

Shiva's power is Shakti, the dynamic creative
mother aspect of the Godhead. It is she who creates and at the
time of dissolution, it is she who swallows her own creation.
Shakti cannot exist without Shiva and Shiva cannot personify
without Shakti.

Therefore Hinduism proclaims the highest personification
of God, the supreme energy, to be feminine. Hinduism is the only
religion in the world, which conceptualizes the supreme form
of Divinity to be a woman. This demonstrates the elevated status
of women in Hinduism as a religion.

Festivals associated with Goddess Durga

An important festival of the Hindus associated
with goddess Durga is that of Durga Puja, which has been celebrated
for ages by Hindus. In the Hindu epics Mahabharata and Ramayana
there are various references to goddess Durga. When the Pandavas
entered the capital of Virata for their period of one year in
disguise they propitiated Durga who appeared before them and
granted them boons. Again, at the commencement of the great war
of Kurukshetra, Lord Krishna advised Arjuna to worship Goddess
Durga to ensure victory in battle.

The festival of Durga Puja is popularly attributed
to a tale from the Hindu epic, Ramayana. Lord Rama went to Lanka,
the kingdom of Ravana - the demon king, to rescue his abducted
wife, Sita. Before starting for his battle with Ravana, Rama
wanted the blessings of goddess Durga. He came to know that the
goddess would be pleased only if she is worshipped with one hundred
eight 'Neel Kamal' or blue lotuses. Rama, after travelling the
whole world, could gather only one hundred seven of them. He
finally decided to offer one of his eyes, which resembled a blue
lotus. Durga, being pleased with the devotion of Rama, appeared
before him and blessed him. The battle with Ravana started on
the 'Saptami' (the seventh day after the new moon night just
prior to the Autumn festival of Durga Puja) and Ravana was finally
killed on the 'Sandhikshan' i.e. the crossover period between
Ashtami (the eighth day after new moon) and Navami (the ninth
day after new moon). Ravana was cremated on Dashami (the tenth
day after new moon). Since the period of this worship was different
from the conventional period of worship of Durga (during the
spring - 'Basanta'), this puja is also known as 'Akal-Bodhan'
or worship (Bodhan) at an unconventional time.

Durga Puja is a Hindu festival observed in
Ashwin Navaratri (month of October) and is celebrated all over
India with great joy especially in West Bengal. The festival
is also popular by other names like Dusshera and Navaratri. The
ten days of festivity are dedicated to the supreme mother goddess
Durga.

Worship of goddess Durga signifies the process
by which the divine potential within every being removes its
layers of ignorance and achieves the state of self-realization.
Hindus celebrate this occasion at an auspicious time every year
to constantly remind themselves of the significance of this very
process. They contemplate the progress made on their spiritual
journey and celebrate with great joy the victory of the supreme
consciousness over the demons of ignorance. The festival is also
a reminder that evil can never triumph over the power of truth.

Durga Puja is the greatest Hindu festival
in which God is adored as Mother. Hinduism is the only religion
in the world, which has emphasized to such an extent the motherhood
of God. Perhaps the greatest testament to the power of Durga
Puja is that even today the Mother is worshipped by billions
of Hindus world wide in exactly the same manner as she was thousands
of years ago.

DEVI
DURGA WITH HER
DIVINE THIRD EYE

Images of Durga usually have an extra divine
eye in the middle of the forehead. There can be four, eight,
ten, eighteen, or twenty arms. The most common objects held in
the hands are a conch, discus, trident, bow, arrow, sword, dagger,
shield, rosary, wine cup, and bell. Her hair is in Karandamukuta,
a crown style of hairdo. She wears gorgeous red clothes and several
ornaments, and stands on a lotus or the head of a buffalo or
rides a lion. There are endless aspects of Durga described in
the Puranas and Agamas (ancient Hindu texts) and the iconography
is consequently varied.

The most important form of Durga is as Mahishasuramardini
or the slayer of Mahishasura (the demon king). The image is of
the Goddess cutting off the head of the buffalo-demon. This image
usually most commonly is shown with eight or ten arms, and the
hands hold weapons and a lotus. Mahishasura, the demon, may be
shown half emerging in his human form from the carcass of his
former buffalo form.

At the Durga Puja, the most important festival
of Durga, she is shown with four other deities - usually smaller
in size than that of goddess Durga. Two deities are placed on
each side of the main idol of goddess Durga. These deities are
Kartikeya, Ganesha, Saraswati, and Lakshmi, who are commonly
identified as her children. The festival of Durga Puja usually
involves beautiful and larger than life clay idols of Durga and
her accompanying deities.

In eastern India Durga Puja is celebrated
with enormous vigor. Enormous tents spring up in practically
every locality and an amazing array of idols of Durga, crafted
from the special clay of river Ganga, are installed. These idols
are crafted by skilful idol makers using a wide array of alternative
materials, the range limited only by imaginative creativity.
The most common of these of course is clay. However, other innovative
media like shola pith, coconut husk, cloth, and flowers, amongst
others are popularly used. Legend has it that the idol of the
goddess is incomplete without a pinch of clay from a prostitute's
courtyard. This probably was society's attempt to include and
accord status to its most alienated beings.

The four days (beginning with the sixth day
after the last new moon before the festival) of the festival
is actually representative of the home-coming of goddess Durga
along with Kartik, Ganesha, Saraswati and Lakshmi. These four
days are marked by celebration and merry-making. The deities
are presented with offerings throughout the festivities. On Vijayadasami,
the "Victorious Tenth Day," the idols are taken in
a parade to a river or tank and immersed as a representation
of bidding a tearful goodbye to the deities. This is usually
a very emotional time for devout Hindus who accompany the idols
to the immersion spot.

The same day sees millions of Hindus also
celebrate the festival of Dusshera which marks the end of evil,
as depicted by the burning of huge effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarna
and Meghnad - the three demon brothers, Ravana being the king
of demons. All three were defeated by Lord Rama on this day.

Other forms of festivities during the period
preceding Dussehra or Vijayadashami also exist, the most popular
being that of the Navaratri festival, which involves the propitiation
of Goddess Durga in nine different forms called the Nava-Durga
(explained in an earlier section), over the nine days preceding
Dussehra and starting on the first day after the last new moon
preceding Dusshera. During Navaratri, one of each of these nine
forms of goddess Durga is worshipped on a particular night for
the destruction of evil and for the preservation of Dharma (religion).

Conclusion

The Devi Mahatmya indicated that Durga, in
the form of Mahamaya or Mahashakti, pervades the universe in
both its forms as material and thought. She creates, maintains,
and periodically destroys it. When the balance of the universe
is disturbed, Durga assumes various forms to restore order and
balance. She is thus also, the guardian of dharma or cosmic order.
This nature of hers makes her akin to a female form of Lord Vishnu
since the concept of a deity assuming a separate form for maintaining
the cosmic order is central to Vaishnavism - the Hindu sect which
follows Lord Vishnu as the sole universal power.

The Devi Mahatmya talks about three such cosmic
interventions by Durga on behalf of the gods: the battle with
Madhu and Kaitabha, the battle with Mahishasura - the buffalo-demon,
and the battle with Shumbha and Nisumbha.

The Devimahatmya states that Durga is the
universe. "As immanent in the world Durga is equated with
the earth. As transcendent, she is the heavenly queen who descends
from time to time to maintain harmony on earth." (Kinsley
1986, 105)

The Divine Mother is beyond all material attributes,
eternal and ever omniscient. She is beyond any change, immutable
and unattainable but by yoga. She is the refuge of the universe
and her nature is of pure consciousness.

Durga, the Mother Goddess is the symbol of
all the auspicious and true qualities which define the Supreme
Being. Of all her forms, Devi Durga is the ultimate representation
of infinite power, purity and strength of purpose, which resides
within the divine essence of every being.

Om. She Who Conquers Over All,
All-Auspicious, the remover of Darkness,
the Excellent One Beyond Time,
the bearer of the Skulls of Impure thought,
the reliever of difficulties, loving, forgiving,
supporter of the Universe,
accept the oblations of the devotee who is one with you,
accept the oblations of ancestral praise,
We bow to you.